• Minmin Lu, Hui Ruan, Weijie Xing, and Yan Hu.
• School of Nursing, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
• J Nurs Manag. 2015 May 1; 23 (4): 440-7.

AimThe investigators examined how nurse staffing affects nurse job satisfaction and quality of care.BackgroundInadequate nurse staffing is a worldwide issue with profound effects on nurse job satisfaction and quality of care. Few studies have examined the relationship between nurse staffing and job satisfaction and quality of care in China.MethodA cross-sectional design was adopted, wherein 873 nurses were surveyed on demographics, nurse staffing, job-related burnout, job dissatisfaction, intent to leave, and quality of care.ResultThe median patient-nurse ratio was five; 45.1% nurses reported high levels of job-related burnout, and 55.6%, job dissatisfaction. In adjusted regression models, patient-nurse ratios of four or less were related to a decrease in the odds of job dissatisfaction (odds ratio 0.55, 95% confidence interval 0.36-0.85) and increase in the odds of quality of care (odds ratio 1.78, 95% confidence interval 1.02-2.82).ConclusionNurse staffing is associated with job dissatisfaction and quality of care.Implications For Nursing ManagementNurse managers should maintain an adequate level of nurse staffing, referring to the patient-nurse ratio. They should create new initiatives to increase job satisfaction among nurses and to evaluate their effects.© 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

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